A District and Session Court in Islamabad on Wednesday issued an arrest warrant for Khyber-Pakhwa chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur in the long-term spirits and weapons recovery case after he failed to appear in court.
The court ordered that CM Gandapur was arrested and presented on September 17. A case against him has been registered at Bara Kahu police station.
Judge Magistrate Mubashir Hassan Chishti had issued arrest warrants for CM Gandapur after dismissing his application, which sought an exemption from personal appearance.
Gandapur’s lawyer, Raja Zahoor-Ul-Hassan, requested the court to suspend Warrants with reference to public embarrassment caused by media coverage.
The court rejected the placement and said, “You are producing the defendant and I will cancel Warrants.” The judge added that a junior lawyer could have requested a new consultation date which would be scheduled.
Read: The court rejects KP CM’s request
In previous hearings, the court noted that it had given KP cm Ali Amin Gandapur ample opportunity and warned that a judgment could be sent in his absence if he did not appear. “No further relief will be awarded if the statement is not registered before July 21,” the magistrate said in a written order.
Gandapur missed the July hearing and was given the right to issue arrests and refer him to register his statement in person or via video link at the next hearing.
The case dates back to October 2016, when the Islamabad police claimed to have recovered five Kalashnikov attack rifles, a gun, six magazines, a bulletproof vest, alcohol and three tear gas shells from a vehicle belonging to Pakistan Tehreek-I-Insaf leader near Bani Gala.
Gandapur has consistently denied the allegations and said he was traveling with two licensed Kalashnikov rifles and that there was a valid weapons license in the vehicle. He also claimed that the bottle allegedly contained alcohol that actually contained honey.
The case has been pending for almost nine years, largely due to Gandapur’s repeated absence from court. His lawyers have repeatedly requested that the lawyer General Record for a statement on his behalf, but these requests have been consistently rejected in accordance with section 342.
